 | This article possibly contains original research. (August 2011) |
| This Hour Has 22 Minutes | |
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| Also known as | 22 Minutes |
| Created by | Mary Walsh |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 30 |
| Production | |
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| Running time | Approx. 22 minutes |
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| Original release | |
| Network | CBC Television |
| Release | October 11, 1993 – present |
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This Hour Has 22 Minutes (commonly shortened to 22 Minutes since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics with a combination of news parody, sketch comedy, and satirical editorials. Originally featuring Cathy Jones, Rick Mercer, Greg Thomey, and Mary Walsh, the series featured satirical sketches of the weekly news and Canadian political events. The show's format is a mock news program, intercut with comic sketches, parody commercials, and humorous interviews of public figures.
Its full name is a parody of This Hour Has Seven Days, a CBC news magazine from the 1960s; the "22 Minutes" refers to the fact that a half-hour television program in Canada and the US is typically 22 minutes long with eight minutes of commercials. Jones and Walsh had previously worked together on the sketch comedy series CODCO, on which Thomey sometimes appeared as a guest. Mercer had been a notable young writer and performer on his own, touring several successful one-man shows of comedic political commentary. Salter Street Films produced the series until the 2003–2004 season. Salter Street was acquired in 2001 by Alliance Atlantis, and production of the series was transferred directly to Alliance Atlantis in the twelfth season. In 2005 Halifax Film, a new company formed by Salter co-founder Michael Donovan, took over production of the show. In 2006, Halifax Film merged with Decode Entertainment to form DHX Media (now WildBrain), which has produced the show since. In 2019, the rights were sold to IoM Media Ventures, which acquired DHX's Halifax studio the year prior.
Recognized with 24 Gemini Awards and 11 Canadian Comedy Awards, 22 Minutes is taped before a live audience in within the old World Trade Centre in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia. Its 28th season was taped at the Light House Arts Centre in Halifax with a smaller audience and crew. The series, which originally aired on Mondays for several seasons and later on Fridays, currently airs Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. on CBC. The series formerly followed the Rick Mercer Report.